Illinois-born designer Matthew M Williams describes his S/S 2023 collection for Givenchy as a ‘transatlantic clash’, an amalgamation of style codes from his native United States and France, the home country of maison founder Hubert de Givenchy. A meeting of ‘Parisian elegance with California cool’, as Givenchy describes, the fusing of locales was encapsulated in the new ‘Voyou’ bag, which sees a ladylike V-shaped silhouette melded with tough, biker-inspired hardware and slouchy tumbled leather. It takes its name from a slang term in French, meaning ‘bad boy’.
Cultural exchange: Givenchy’s ‘Voyou’ bag
‘Voyou’ bag in medium green leather, €1,850, by Givenchy
‘With the Voyou, you know at a glance that it’s Parisian, but it’s at home wherever it goes,’ says Williams. Of the S/S 2023 collection more widely, the Givenchy creative director explains that ‘everything began with Hubert… I looked into his archives with my adopted Parisian eye, but also with my instinctive American eye. The cultural exchange reflected in this collection has been a long time in the making.’
Arriving in mini, medium and large sizes, alongside a veritable candy shop of colours – from vivid shades of pink and mint green to shiny laminated leather and denim – the Voyou is the latest addition to what Williams calls his ‘lexicon’ of Givenchy, a thread connecting past and present in the designer’s glossy, contemporary style. ‘I want to revisit fashion archetypes with a kind of new language,’ says Williams.
‘Voyou’ bag in large black leather, €2,200, by Givenchy
A version of this story appears in the April 2023 issue of Wallpaper*, available now in print, on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News +. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today.
-
Come as you are to see Kurt Cobain’s acoustic guitar on show in the UK for the first timeKurt Cobain’s acoustic guitar goes on display at the Royal College of Music Museum in London as part of an exhibition exploring Nirvana’s MTV Unplugged performance
-
Promemoria’s new furniture takes you from London to Lake Como, with loveAhead of its Milan Design Week 2025 debut, we try out Promemoria’s new furniture collection by David Collins Studio, at founder Romeo Sozzi’s Lake Como villa
-
Fluid workspaces: is the era of prescriptive office design over?We discuss evolving workspaces and track the shape-shifting interiors of the 21st century. If options are what we’re after in office design, it looks like we’ve got them
-
Givenchy’s Antigona Cube handbag riffs on a house classicA much-loved Givenchy bag comes in a refreshed silhouette, inspired by the art of origami
-
How to wear black in summerWallpaper* journeys to Morocco’s Aman resort to make a case for wearing black this summer with S/S 2024’s most darkly dramatic looks
-
Utilitarian men’s fashion that will elevate your everydayFrom Prada to Margaret Howell, utilitarian and workwear-inspired men’s fashion gets an upgrade for S/S 2024
-
Documentary ‘High & Low’ charts the rise, fall and redemption of John Galliano‘High & Low: John Galliano’ (released today) dissects the designer’s showstopping contributions to fashion against the backdrop of his turbulent life. Here, director Kevin Macdonald tells Wallpaper* more
-
Givenchy Beauty’s latest eye products take cues from skincare and haute coutureGivenchy Beauty’s creative director Thom Walker catches up with Mary Cleary on the brand’s latest offerings
-
Paris Fashion Week Men’s A/W 2024: Loewe to HermèsThe best of Paris Fashion Week Men’s A/W 2024 in our ongoing report, from Jonathan Anderson’s church of masculinity at Loewe to a consideration of pleasure from Véronique Nichanian at Hermès
-
Best in shows: Wallpaper* picks S/S 2024’s standout looksAs part of Wallpaper’s Design Awards 2024 issue, we select the winning S/S 2024 runway collections – and their defining looks – at the start of a new season in style
-
Matthew M Williams is leaving GivenchyAmerican designer Matthew M Williams is set to exit his role as creative director of Givenchy after a three-year tenure
